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Thursday, January 27, 2011

Oh, HONEY!

This post is not about significant others. Rather, how all this studying with J is making me ask: "Why is that?", too, and finding some cool stuff by tinkering with questions in my mind. Which leads to some fun finds.

The Bee finding started with a BYU magazine, received in the mail. One of the articles had super magnified pics of.. drumroll..., BEEs. These pictures had been on a Exhibition in Provo, Utah. I just missed it.

So I went to the the photographer, Rose-Lynn Fisher, web-site to learn more about her 17 years of studying this stinging worker. Using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) she magnified bees, dipped in a thin layer of gold, and what she came upon was something akin to Calvin's adventures on alien planets in the comic strip, Calvin and Hobbes. Frontiers of art and science, that never ended upon each magnification. And all compiled into a thick book of her pictures!!

I showed J the cool pictures and we noticed the bees's bodies not only covered in hair, but some varieties had hairy eyes.

"Why would that be(e)?" I asked myself. -It's hard enough that they have thousands of crazy shapes imbedded on their eyes, then to have to deal with hairs protruding from them.

Imagining J as an electron turning and twisting around the rocking chair nucleus atom from last week I was also interested in this microscope and wanted to look through one. I was wondering how those crazy turning electrons could magnify so much and then Rose-Lynn could make digital images of the wonder.... so the hair question seemed pretty much a random question. But, heck, if she could spend 17 years studying them- then I am sure she answered that basic Q.

What I found was that those seemingly annoying hairs is one HUGE factor in gathering pollen for the bees. When in flight, the hairs create static electricity, pulling as much pollen in as they can. Brillaint.

Searching further, I discovered that over 3,000 hexagons comprise the eyes. The photographer made the analogy that what they litarally see, becomes the reality in their hives: hexagonal honey combs. Comparing that to man's "vision", she pointed out that what we "envision" become our reality. That could be a deep topic for another day.

So I stuck to the basics.

I learned that more circles can fit in a hexagon, which is important for those bees, cause they need all the space they can get to put in that delicious honey in their hives.

Honey (raw- not cooked above a certain temperature.) has 17% water inside of it. which helps with HYDRATION. (Getting IVs frequently of fluids that really caught my eye) I went on to discover the antimicrobial benefits of the honey, the resin it picks up from trees, mixes with its excrements, and uses it to fix the walls of the honeycomb.

Because of the digestive enzymes it mixes with its concoction, it is PRE-DIGESTED, so easily converted by our bodies and sent straight to the muscles, cells, and tissues.

I had to call a local company, Brownings, to ask the owners about that little mixture the bee uses to "glue" its wax hexagons. Talking to, Andrea, the store manager, I learned a lot more.

Sure, I'd known it was a good health food, but I didn't know the possibilities that it held to help me in my own situation.

I'd mixed it with lemon for sore throats, put it on toast, and wiped it off sticky fingers. But I'd never learned that it was packed with all B vitamins, 40% protein, and tons of other vitamins and minerals. Pre-digested. Good for those with some serious problems with digestion. And the ability to help my cells retain water.

I shared all of this with the Torment. Who then put me to the task of finding out some little recipe called Pinole, or something. And how an ultra-marathoner asked the question: "Why Do I hurt When I Run?"

Apparently, it led him to a group of running fanatics in a remote Canyon in Mexico where they run all day. In their bare feet. -Or flip flops or something. All while smiling and having fun. hmm.

His book is called: "Born to Run."

Not being a HUGE runner, I realized that maybe it was because I always wore shoes. But, it piqued my interest that someone would go to that great of length to find out some interesting info. Like what they eat to keep them going all day.

It involves Chia seeds and cornmeal cakes. And LOVING to run as if it wasn't a workout but like driving a nice sports car; the body.

My question: "How do I grow Chia seeds in Idaho? Or can I? And can I turn my attitude around about running or working out?

This experiment will take a bit, but I will let ya know what I find. And whether or not the Queen Bee plucks her eye hairs cause she just sits around and eat Royal Jelly and mates. My guess is she has a drone pluck them or her body simply eliminates that annoying problem. If you find the answer, let me know.